We present a versatile, high-brightness, guided-wave source of polarization entangled photons, emitted at a telecom wavelength. Photon-pairs are generated using an integrated type-0 nonlinear ...waveguide, and subsequently prepared in a polarization entangled state via a stabilized fiber interferometer. We show that the single photon emission wavelength can be tuned over more than 50nm, whereas the single photon spectral bandwidth can be chosen at will over more than five orders of magnitude (from 25MHz to 4THz). Moreover, by performing entanglement analysis, we demonstrate a high degree of control of the quantum state via the violation of the Bell inequalities by more than 40 standard deviations. This makes this scheme suitable for a wide range of quantum optics experiments, ranging from fundamental research to quantum information applications.
We report on details of the setup, as well as on the characterization of all included components, previously outlined in Kaiser et al. (Laser Phys. Lett. 10 (2013) 045202).
We present the pre-concept design of the European DEMO Magnet System, which has successfully passed the DEMO plant-level gate review in 2020. The main design input parameters originate from the ...so-called DEMO 2018 baseline, which was produced using the PROCESS systems code. It defines a major and minor radius of 9.1 m and 2.9 m, respectively, an on-axis magnetic field of 5.3 T resulting in a peak field on the toroidal field (TF) conductor of 12.0 T.
Four variants, all based on low-temperature superconductors (LTS), have been designed for the 16 TF coils. Two of these concepts were selected to be further pursued during the Concept Design Phase (CDP): the first having many similarities to the ITER TF coil concept and the second being the most innovative one, based on react-and-wind (RW) Nb3Sn technology and winding the coils in layers. Two variants for the five Central Solenoid (CS) modules have been investigated: an LTS-only concept resembling to the ITER CS and a hybrid configuration, in which the innermost layers are made of high-temperature superconductors (HTS), which allows either to increase the magnetic flux or to reduce the outer radius of the CS coil. Issues related to fatigue lifetime which emerged in mechanical analyses will be addressed further in the CDP. Both variants proposed for the six poloidal field coils present a lower level of risk for future development. All magnet and conductor design studies included thermal-hydraulic and mechanical analyses, and were accompanied by experimental tests on both LTS and HTS prototype samples (i.e. DC and AC measurements, stability tests, quench evolution etc.). In addition, magnet structures and auxiliary systems, e.g. cryogenics and feeders, were designed at pre-concept level. Important lessons learnt during this first phase of the project were fed into the planning of the CDP. Key aspects to be addressed concern the demonstration and validation of critical technologies (e.g. industrial manufacturing of RW Nb3Sn and HTS long conductors, insulation of penetrations and joints), as well as the detailed design of the overall Magnet System and mechanical structures.
Callipeltin A, a cyclic depsipeptide from the New Caledonian Lithistida sponge Callipelta sp., is a macrocyclic lactone containing four amino acids in the L configuration, Ala, Leu, Thr (2 residues); ...one (Arg) in the D configuration; two N-methyl amino acids, N-MeAla and N-MeGln; a methoxy tyrosine, a 3,4-dimethyl-l-glutamine; and a 4-amino-7-guanidino-2,3 dihydroxypentanoic acid (AGDHE), formally derived from L-Arg. In cardiac sarcolemmal vesicles Callipeltin A induces a powerful (IC50 = 0.85 μM) and selective inhibition of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger. In electrically driven guinea-pig atria, at concentrations ranging between 0.7 and 2.5 μM, Callipeltin A induces a positive inotropic effect, which at the highest concentrations is accompanied by a rise in resting tension. It is suggested that the positive inotropic effect is linked to the inhibition of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger and that Callipeltin A may be an useful tool to study the role of the cardiac Na+/Ca2+ exchanger in physiological and pathological conditions.
Quantum states with non-Gaussian statistics generated by optical parametric oscillators (OPO) with fluctuating parameters are studied by means of the kurtosis excess of the external field ...quadratures. The field generated is viewed as the response of a nonlinear device to the fluctuations of pump laser amplitude and frequency, crystal temperature, and cavity detuning, in addition to quantum noise sources. The kurtosis excess has been evaluated perturbatively up to the third order in the strength of the crystal nonlinear coupling factor and the second order in the classical fluctuating parameters. Applied to the device described in Opt. Expr. 13, 948 (2005), the model has given values of the kurtosis excess in good agreement with the measured ones.
To evaluate whether chronic therapy with probiotics affects plasma levels of cytokines and oxidative/nitrosative stress parameters, as well as liver damage, in patients with various types of chronic ...liver disease.
A total of 22 nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and 20 alcoholic liver cirrhosis (AC) patients were enrolled in the study and compared with 36 HCV-positive patients with chronic hepatitis without (20, CH) or with (16, CC) liver cirrhosis. All patients were treated with the probiotic VSL#3. Routine liver tests, plasma levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin (IL)-6 and -10, malondialdehyde (MDA), and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), S-nitrosothiols (S-NO), were evaluated on days -30, 0, 90, and 120.
Treatment with VSL#3 exerted different effects in the various groups of patients: in NAFLD and AC groups, it significantly improved plasma levels of MDA and 4-HNE, whereas cytokines (TNF-alpha, IL-6, and IL-10) improved only in AC patients. No such effects were observed in HCV patients. Routine liver damage tests and plasma S-NO levels were improved at the end of treatment in all groups.
Results of the study suggest that manipulation of intestinal flora should be taken into consideration as possible adjunctive therapy in some types of chronic liver disease.
We demonstrate a novel trustworthy witness for single-photon entanglement based only on local homodyne measurements. This operational test is well suited for quantum networks, and highlights the ...potential of the optical hybrid approach.
Polarization entangled photon pair sources based on either type-II or type-0 PPLN waveguides emitting at telecom wavelengths are presented. Implementation of such sources, associated high-quality ...entanglement, as well as related potential for future quantum applications are shown.
Aim. To define the characteristics of the Italian patient presenting non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Patients and methods. A total of 305 patients with abnormally high plasma aminotransferase ...and/or gamma-glutamyl-transpeptidase levels for at least 12 months, with no known cause of chronic liver damage, were consecutively enrolled in the study. Clinical, routine biochemical and liver histology investigations were carried out in all patients. Also evaluated were: (a) oral glucose load; (b) insulinaemia and insulin-resistance using the HOMA test model; and (c) plasma endotoxaemia, total antioxidant plasma capability, tumour necrosis factor-alpha, plasma interleukin-6 and -10 levels. Malondialdehyde and 4-hydroxynonenal content were determined on liver samples from 120 patients.
Results. The majority of patients were young overweight or obese males, with dyslipidaemia (20–60%), diabetes (10.5%), hyperinsulinaemia (40%), hyperferritinaemia (35%). Endotoxaemia was negative in all patients and cytokines were only sporadically altered. Total antioxidant plasma capability was decreased in 38.4% of the patients. Eighty percent of the cases had histological steatosis with a mild degree of inflammation and fibrosis. Seven patients had cirrhosis. Lipid peroxidation markers were increased in 90% of the cases, inversely correlated with fibrosis. Even if at univariate analysis, age, ferritin and tissue 4-hydroxynonenal were independent factors of steatosis (
P<0.01), and insulin, HOMA and ferritin of inflammation and fibrosis (
P<0.01), at multivariate analysis no single factor was found to be an independent predictor of hepatic lesions.
Conclusions. The typical Italian patient with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is a young male, obese, not diabetic, with a variable incidence of dyslipidaemia and hyperinsulinaemia. Only liver biopsy may define the type of liver damage.
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